Moon King lead this week’s cross-Canada wrap-up

Jonathon BernsteinAs I mentioned back in October, in a few years – or even sooner – the late Spiral Beach could well be regarded as an important touchstone in the recent history of the Toronto independent scene. Bassist Dorian Wolf now holds down those same duties in internationally-noted electronic act Austra, guitarist Airick Woodhead is garnering heaps of attention as the circuit-bending Doldrums, and the remaining two members – keyboardist/vocalist Maddy Wilde and drummer Daniel Woodhead – have slowly but surely been turning heads as the dreampop-peddling Moon King.

Their debut EP Obsession I came out last Summer and offered them the pretence to start gigging and making a (new) name for themselves, and Exclaim reports the follow-up EP – Obsession II, of course – will arrive April 16. That’s just in time for their North American tour supporting Born Ruffians; a tour which doesn’t currently have a Toronto date, but if you think these two acts aren’t doing a hometown show shortly after that last official date in Detroit in late May, you’re nuts.

A track from the new EP has been made available to download, and you can still stream the first Obsession as well as watch/download the lead single from it.

MP3: Moon King – “Appel”
MP3: Moon King – “Only Child”
Video: Moon King – “Only Child”
Stream: Moon King / Obsession I

All that said, Doldrums is unquestionably the Beach alumnus of the hour: CBC Music, The Montreal Gazette, and Interview have interviews with Woodhead and they’ve just put out a new video from the just-released Lesser Evil.

Video: Doldrums – “She Is The Wave”

Bruce Peninsula are known for trotting big lineups – like double-digit head counts – onstage for their live shows, but it will be the core trio of Neil Haverty, Misha Bower, and Matt Cully who will represent at a special show on March 10 at the Campbell House Museum in Toronto, tickets $20 at the door.

MP3: Bruce Peninsula – “In Your Light”

As promised, the Fucked Up-curated Long Winter series will return for a fifth instalment this month and feature a twang-tacular lineup led by The Sadies and Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet. That goes down March 23 at The Great Hall.

MP3: The Sadies – “Another Year Again”
MP3: Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet – “13”

DIY has an interview with Suuns, whose new album Images du Futur is streaming over at CBC Music ahead of its official release next Tuesday, March 5. They play Lee’s Palace on March 23 for Canadian Musicfest.

MP3: Suuns – “Edie’s Dream”
Stream: Suuns / Images du Futur

The Coast talks to Two Hours Traffic about their new album Foolish Blood. Their Canadian Musicfest appearance is March 21 at Lee’s Palace.

Exclaim has the new video from Woodpigeon’s just-released Thumbtacks & Glue.

Video: Woodpigeon – “Red Rover, Red Rover”

Kathleen Edwards has released a new video from last year’s Voyageur.

Video: Kathleen Edwards – “Chameleon/Comedian”

Yamantaka//Sonic Titan talk to Spinner about what they’ve got planned for their next album.